Newly-appointed New Orleans Pelicans executive vice president for basketball operations David Griffin appears to be over the moon with his team's recent coup of league-renowned athletic trainer Aaron Nelson.
Speaking to William Guillory of The Athletic, Griffin explained why he believes the arrival of Nelson might just prove to be the game-changer for the Pelicans.
“Much like (head coach) Alvin (Gentry), we have a level of trust with each other and the fact that he has the reputation of being as good as he is while at the same time being intellectually curious so he can continue to grow, evolve and get better,” Griffin said. “It’s what makes him great. Aaron can be very competent and he can be very confident in his diagnosis of things, but he’s intellectually curious and he doesn’t dig himself in. I think because of that, players know he has their best interest at heart at all times. If Aaron tells you you’re good, you know you’re good because he’s coming at this from a perspective of (being mindful) of the total player, the total person.
“He’s had some much publicized, radically successful experiences with players because they know he has their best interest at heart. What he’s doing is making them feel better than they’ve ever felt. It’s just like all human beings — we never remember what anybody says or what they did, but we always remember how they made us feel. Aaron tangibly makes you feel better as an athlete.”
Griffin provided us with an excellent description of how exactly Nelson might be able to impact the players on the team. Nelson is perhaps most well known for his tremendous work with Steve Nash a decade or so ago during their time together with the Phoenix Suns, so it is not going to be surprising if he brings this same type of elite physical conditioning to New Orleans.
Follow Us
Subscribe